Ever since we added two sweet dairy goats to the place last spring I've been thinking it would be fun to learn to make soap. I have read a good bit about the process, and frankly, it seemed daunting. There is a lot of measuring and weighing and caustic chemicals (lye) involved. Exact measuring and things that involve numbers and math are NOT things that come easily to me. Fact was, I was scared to try. So, when my friend told me there was a one night class on soap making at the local high school I called quick to register. I talked my friend Marion into joining me.
When we got to the point in class where a lot of stirring was involved, I volunteered to help. Our instructor was Megan Cafferata. She is the crafts person behind locally famous Sisters Soap. (www.mainesisterssoap.com)One sister owns a goat dairy, the other turns some of the milk into beautiful soaps.
Our small class watched as she measured, and weighed and mixed. She heated some ingredients and cooled others. Then there was a lot of stirring, followed by her skillfully pouring the amber, lemon verbena scented liquid into a bunch of yogurt cups. These were then snuggled up under a layer of towels, where they sat undisturbed, curing for 24 hours. Each class member was encouraged to return the next day and pick up 5 of the cups. I did so with great glee!
As instructed I popped them in the freezer for a while, then ran the container under hot water until each perfect soap popped out. They need to cure a few more weeks before they can be used, but they are currently perfuming my kitchen with their sweet scent.
I am feeling more confident about the process having seen it done. I plan to try making some soap of my own in the very near future, and can hardly wait!
When we got to the point in class where a lot of stirring was involved, I volunteered to help. Our instructor was Megan Cafferata. She is the crafts person behind locally famous Sisters Soap. (www.mainesisterssoap.com)One sister owns a goat dairy, the other turns some of the milk into beautiful soaps.
Our small class watched as she measured, and weighed and mixed. She heated some ingredients and cooled others. Then there was a lot of stirring, followed by her skillfully pouring the amber, lemon verbena scented liquid into a bunch of yogurt cups. These were then snuggled up under a layer of towels, where they sat undisturbed, curing for 24 hours. Each class member was encouraged to return the next day and pick up 5 of the cups. I did so with great glee!
As instructed I popped them in the freezer for a while, then ran the container under hot water until each perfect soap popped out. They need to cure a few more weeks before they can be used, but they are currently perfuming my kitchen with their sweet scent.
I am feeling more confident about the process having seen it done. I plan to try making some soap of my own in the very near future, and can hardly wait!
2 comments:
Wow, home made goat's milk soap! I know what I want for Christmas this year!
Thanks so much for the plug and I'm glad you enjoyed the class! The only thing I would note is that the scent was lemongrass....which smells just as nice as lemon verbena!
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